United States: Did you know nearly half of the top-selling protein powders contain dangerous levels of heavy metals like lead, arsenic, and cadmium?
According to a new report from the Clean Label Project, these levels exceed government safety limits.
Why is this a big deal?
The Environmental Protection Agency says no level of lead exposure to any consumable thig is safe, yet inconsistent food regulations also leave us vulnerable. If you’re relying on protein powders to boost your health, you might be somehow unknowingly exposing yourself to harmful toxins.
As reported by the Axios, by the numbers: 47% of products had at least one component with residue at or above one federal or state guideline.
Actually, 160 products belonging to 70 most popular brands, which occupy 83% of the market, were examined by researchers.
The intrigue:
The concentrations of heavy metals in organic products were reportedly higher than in non-organic ones: lead in the tested organic products was thrice that of non-organic products, and cadmium was double the amount in non-organic products.
An analysis of plant-based protein powder revealed that they contained lead three time more than whey protein powder. It was also evident that plants can take up metals in quick succession right from the soil, even from the fertilizers.
Chocolate flavoured powders had four times more lead than the vanilla ones and up to 110 times more cadmium.
The other side:
Scientists noted bisphenols decrease compared to their 2018 study, with BPA and BPS levels labeled as ‘not of concern’.
Companies claim that they do not use BPA and BPS both of which are endocrine disruptors, The chemical was found in three out of 160 samples of protein powders compared with 55% in the same products in previous tests.
How it works:
Sources through which contaminants get into protein powder include packaging and the soil that the proteins’ ingredients are grown in.
What they’re saying:
“This study is a wakeup call for consumers manufacturers, retailers and regulators,” researchers concluded in the same report.
Seeing that there are neither complete rule and regulations by the federal government for the industry that pertains to the presence of heavy metals in dietary supplements, it is high time that the industry provided its own solutions.
According to the report, the protein supplement global market reached $9.697 billion in 2023.
What they did:
Clean Label Project worked with an analytical chemistry laboratory to analyze 35,862 datapoints.
They analyzed heavy metals and bisphenols which are a plasticizer used with plastics.